Critter Cuisine

Edible Insects Can Help Feed the Planet

Insect expert and bug farmer Sarah Beynon, Ph.D., a research associate for England’s University of Oxford, reports, “Two billion people eat insects every day, and not just in the West. In fact, insects are extremely good for you and eating them is good for the planet, too.” Western governments are enthusiastic about the potential of entomophagy—the human practice of eating insects—for feeding growing numbers of people sustainably.

By 2050, humans will require 70 percent more food, 120 percent more water and 42 percent more cropland. Meat production is predicted to double, and conventional production consumes extraordinary volumes of land and water resources. A recent British Food and Agriculture Organisation report suggests that there are more than 1,000 known species of edible insects.

Insects are extremely nutritious, containing lots of calcium, zinc and omega-3 fatty acids, and are low in cholesterol. They’re also packed with protein; by weight, crickets can contain more protein than beef.